Yet another windless day at RC 44 Austria Cup

No racing took place on the fourth day of the RC 44 Austria Cup. Today’s fleet regattas got cancelled at 5:00 PM after a long day waiting for the breeze to settle.

BMW Oracle's Tom Ehman and Manolo Ruiz de Elvira talk in Valencia's yacht club

It was interesting but it wasn't what we were expecting or what we would have liked to listen or see. This pretty much sums up Friday night's presentation by Tom Ehman, head of external affairs, and Manolo Ruiz de Elvira, senior designer, at the premises of Valencia's yacht club. The two men from America's Cup Challenger of Record BMW Oracle talked to an audience of around 40 people on the America's Cup for about an hour and a half, touching almost all aspects of the world's oldest sports competition, ranging from its history to the most recent legal issues and the current state of affairs of their own team.

It was initially planned to be a "private" talk, restricted to the yacht club's members but finally the media were allowed, a fact that in my view definitely altered the issues, tone and philosophy of the presentation. It suffices to say that around 25 minutes into the show, the crew of Valencia's main TV station was asked to turn off the cameras and take them out of the room. Obviously, Valencia Sailing doesn't have any footage either, despite the fact I had my camera ready. In addition, even the liberty of taking pictures was restrained and I was once asked to put it away, when the presentation's most "revealing" slide appeared (it was the oven where, according to Ehman, the biggest parts of the yacht's hull are baked; more on that later). It is true though, there was hardly anything revealing or new for anybody with some knowledge or understanding of the issues. Don't expect any scoops here.

As I said, around 35 members and 5 journalists were present. This is not Anacortes or New York, so nobody was expecting a huge turnout although any club member would have liked it, it was entertaining. The audience ranged from the old commodore down to the 9-year old kid and optimist sailor who took the microphone and stated his dream was to become a sailor of BMW Oracle. In fact, the whole show was a good PR action by the team towards the host city of the event, rather than a meeting of the design heads. The point was to make the American team look more pro-Valencian than Alinghi.

Given that aim, the show had to be fun and of course try to portray the Defender in a disadvantaged position. Seconds after getting the microphone, Ehman's first question to the audience was who was supporting Alingi and who his team. I can assure you there were more pro-BMW Oracle hands raised. After that he went on presenting the history of the America's Cup, from 1851 to the 32nd edition. He cunningly praised Alinghi and Ernesto Bertarelli for the all the "great things" they achieved in the 32nd America's Cup that resulted in the best racing ever.

But of course he was not there to praise Bertarelli. His next slide was titled "Why not continue with what we already had in the 32nd Cup?". Because, according to Ehman, "our friend Ernesto had a different idea" and created the CNEV (Club Nautico Español de Vela) in order to better control the America's Cup. When the now-infamous photo of the Protocol signature aboard Vava flashed on the screen, I was surprised by the boos heard, the voices of contempt and the shouts of "shame" or "disgrace". It is true though, that Valencia's yacht club had high expectations to be the Challenger of Record, instead of the newly-formed CNEV.

Ehman and Ruiz de Elvira gave an overview of the legal steps taken by BMW Oracle after the presentation by Alinghi and the CNEV of the new protocol, always trying to choose the worst looking photos when anyone related to Alinghi was shown. In fact, with all my respect to him, the face of SNG's secretary while receiving GGYC's challenge, on July 11, was funny. He surely didn't seem happy at all.

At times it was not the photos that were funny but the captions used to describe them. There was one of the July 25 presentation, showing Bertarelli and Michel Bonnefous with the caption "I can't lose - I have the best lawyers"

First family photo of BMW Oracle in September 2007. Valencia, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

He then showed BMW Oracle's first family photo (see above) taken sometime in September 2007 after Russell Coutts had formed the core of the team. One of the following slides was by far the most imaginative. Ernesto Bertarelli was shown holding the America's Cup and kissing it (it was difficult to tell whether it was from the 31st or the 32nd edition) with a hilarious caption "Kiss my cup", probably referring to the Swiss billionaire's refusal to negotiate. Both Ehman and Ruiz de Elvira repeatedly brought up that issue, Bertarelli's alleged refusal to talk, when commenting on the events from July 2007 to December 2007.

It was then time to talk about what BMW Oracle is currently doing, sailing-wise. So, they mentioned the RC44s, the TP52s and of course the Extreme 40's. Surprisingly, there were photos of BMW Oracle's catamaran capsize last week here in Valencia but that was a great opportunity to show that Alinghi also capsizes, showing Friday's incident in Lugano both with pictures as well as video (that you can watch here). The audience was amazed to see the impressive capsize of Alingh's white catamaran at the top mark.

BMW Oracle has also been training in trimarans as has Alinghi. Obviously, the slide showed the capsized FONCIA upside down with Alinghi's crew onboard.

What happens next
Half of the talk being about the past, the rest was about the future, or at least what BMW Oracle thinks will happen. One of the slides was about the possible dates of the 33rd America's Cup, stating that July 2008 was "improbable" but leaving a question mark for October 2008 or any month between January and July 2009. According to Ehman, all of Alinghi's legal actions have one and only aim, to win more time.

The slide on possible venues was hilarious as well (see below). It appears that Bertarelli not only is in talks with all the remaining communist regimes of the world, he must have approached most of the kings, sheiks or sultans of the Persian Gulf.

Where will the 33rd America's Cup take place? Valencia, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

An hour had passed since the start of the show and we still hadn't heard or seen anything about BOR90x90, the team's multihull under construction. Unfortunately, we didn't learn much and we were even allowed to photograph less. Of course, there wasn't much to see. The only photo of anything close to the boat is here below. This tent is called the "Vehicle Assembly Building" in BMW Oracle parlance. It adjoins the actual boat shed and as its name implies, the various parts of the yacht are assembled in there. It is nothing extraordinary, just a temporary construction in the city of Anacortes, Washington.

The only slide from inside the boat shed will not appear on Valencia Sailing since I was asked to put my camera away. It was a tent inside the boat shed, very similar to the ones used for outdoor parties. According to Ehman, it is the oven where the biggest pieces of the hull are baked. It was obviously completely covered and two, apparently, big pipes were coming out from its sides and merged into one, somewhere in the middle.

As it was expected, neither Ehman nor Ruiz de Elvira entered into any technical details. Still, one slide was educative. The future BOR90x90 is as big as two basketball courts, side by side.

The Vehicle Assembly Building in Anacortes, Washington. Valencia, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Team Ceeref confirms its current leadership in the RC 44 Class, ahead of Team Aqua

[Source: RC 44] With Igor Lah at the helm and James Spithill calling the shots, the Slovenian team had another excellent series on day one of the fleet race event of the RC 44 Austria Cup, taking the lead ahead of Team Aqua and Team Banco Espirito Santo.

Gmunden, May 30, 2008 – The specific conditions on Lake Traunsee definitely have an impact on the RC 44 Championship Tour. Some love it, others don’t. But at the end of the day, two teams clearly lead the way: Igor Lah’ Team Ceeref and Chris Bake’s Team Aqua, respectively winner and second of the match race event yesterday and clear leaders of the fleet race event after three races.

The fleet regatta started in the early afternoon, with a light thermal breeze (8 – 10 knots). Team Aqua took an excellent start and led the entire fleet throughout the race. At the other end of the ranking, BMW ORACLE Racing – with John Kostecki calling the shots for Larry Ellison, managed to fight its way back from last to second during the first downwind leg, benefiting from on a stronger pressure on the right of the course. During the last downwind leg, Ceeref made a fake jibe, sending BMW ORACLE Racing to the less favoured right side of the course and grabbing the second spot with style.

The second race was entirely dominated by Ceeref, who increased its lead leg after leg. On great form, Markus Wieser’s Team Sea Dubai managed to grab the second spot, just ahead of Team Aqua. Four teams got penalised at the first windward mark (Team Organika, BMW ORACLE Racing, Cro-Aut-Sail and Team Hiroshi) for establishing their bowsprits before reaching the windward gate. The strong action by the Jury reshuffled the cards and spread a certain amount of discontent within the fleet.

The last race of the day saw once again Team Aqua take a great start and lead the fleet. As for Ceeref, it started last and managed to fight its way back, shift after shift and puff after puff, overtaking Aqua in the last downwind leg to win the race; an impressive display of smart boat handling and strategic clairvoyance.

The event carries on until Sunday. Tomorrow Saturday, the RC 44s will compete in the long distance DHL Trophy, which is part of the fleet race ranking.

They said:

Igor Lah, helmsman, Team Ceeref: “Our team work was excellent and this is the main recipe to our success, together with our strategy. During the race, James Spithill and Michele Ivaldi were talking a lot at our different options and they clearly did a good job. As for me, I was just concentrating on optimal steering.”

Chris Bake, helmsman, Team Aqua: “We have done much more team work during this event than previously this year. Our set up is also good, and my focus is back. We can clearly see that it pays off. I also want to add, on another note, that our team sails under the colors of the World Land Trust. We sail with a zero carbon footprint; this is a message that I want to bring across and I want to encourage others to follow in our wake.”

Noel Drennan, BMW ORACLE Racing: “We have spent our entire day looking outside of the boat, trying to anticipate the shifts and the gusts. This is very interesting sailing. It’s a nice change for us; we are used to 5 degrees shifts out at sea. It reminds me of my dinghy years. Both because of the lake and the RC 44: it reacts like a dinghy.”

Armando Giulietti, Team Hiroshi – Città di Milano: “I don’t like this. It’s very shifty, and we can’t anticipate the shifts. I am not very happy; we need to change the way we sail during the following days. We need to minimize the damage.”

Fleet-race, provisional results after three races (no discard):

(Name of team, helmsman, No of victories / defeats, points)

1) Team Ceeref, Igor Lah, 2, 1, 1 - 4 points
2) Team Aqua, Chris Bake,1, 3, 2 - 6 points
3) Team Banco Espirito Santo, Patrick de Barros, 4, 4, 4 - 12 points
4) BMW ORACLE Racing, Larry Ellison, 3, 9, 3 - 15 points
5) Team Beecom, Isao Mita 7, 5, 5 – 17 points
6) Sea Dubai, Markus Wieser 6, 2, DSQ – 18 points
7) Team Hiroshi - Città di Milano, Armando Giulietti, 5, 7, 6 - 18 points
8) Cro-Aut-Sail, Rene Mangold, 9, 6, 8 - 23 points
9) Team Organika, Maciej Navrocki, 8, 8, 7 – 23 points

Breaking news: Alinghi capsizes again, this time in iShares Cup event in Lugano

The Alinghi White Extreme 40 catamaran capsized in the Lugano lake, where the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup is taking place.


Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Video copyright iShares Cup

Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/OC Events

Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/OC Events

Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/OC Events

Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/OC Events

Alinghi White Extreme 40 capsizes in the opening event of the 2008 iShares Cup. Lugano, 30 May 2008. Photo copyright Vincent Curutchet/DPPI/OC Events

BMW Oracle to hold a presentation tonight in Valencia

BMW Oracle, the Challenger of Record for the 33rd America's Cup, will hold a presentation tonight at 8pm, local time, in Valencia's Yacht Club.

Tom Ehman, spokesperson, and Manolo Ruiz de Elvira, designer, will talk to an audience of club members and media.

We still don't know what these two gentlemen will talk about but if you have any question you would like to be asked, just leave a comment at this post.

We will try to publish online the video of the presentation later on Friday night.

The Quebramar GP42 Cup goes to Saint-Tropez next week

[Source: Quebramar GP42 Cup] After an eventful start in Santa Margherita, Italy, the GP42 fleet will now move to Saint-Tropez, France for the second event of the Quebramar GP42 Cup, the Giraglia Rolex Cup, held from June 8th to 10th.

Eight boats, representing eight top-level teams lead by some of the world’s best sailors will be competing off the coast of the famous French port city of Saint Tropez, the first time ever the GP42 class holds a regatta in France. Despite the absence of a French team, many boats will not be racing in uncharted territory, given the presence of many America’s Cup and Olympic French sailors.

Will the bay of Saint-Tropez and its tricky breeze reshuffle the cards in the Quebramar GP42 Cup and upset the leaderboard hierarchy? Despite being just the second year of the up-and-coming GP42 class, the arrival of top-notch sailors significantly increased the already high level and raised the bar even further.

Dozens of America’s Cups, world championships and Olympic medals will be getting onboard the 8 GP42 boats every day. Paolo Ciàn, José Maria Van der Ploeg, Cameron Appleton, Bertrand Pacé, Sébastien Col, Laureano Wizner, Gabriele Bruni, Santi López-Vázquez, José Maria Ponce, Tanguy Cariou, Paolo Montefusco or Tom Schnackenberg are just some of the names that helm, call tactics or trim mainsails in the GP42 fleet. One thing is for sure; Desafío will now face even stronger opposition.

The Spanish all America’s Cup crew of Desafío dominated the opening event of the Quebramar GP42 Cup with 3 bullets and a 3rd place, obtaining a handsome 12-point margin from second placed. Still, Desafío’s crew had to work and think harder than last year in order to cross the finish line ahead of the fleet.

The score table gets much tighter and exciting, since a mere 3 points separate second placed Canarias Puerto Calero from 6th Roma GP42.2, and every single race will be as important as ever. Canarias Puerto Calero, the boat from the Atlantic island of Lanzarote, helmed by Spanish match-racing champion José Maria Ponce, didn’t win any race but clearly showed that consistency paid.

One point behind them is AIRIS and Near Miss, two newcomers to the GP42 class. The former, an Italian entry, was helmed by the famous kiwi sailor Cameron Appleton while the latter, representing the Société Nautique de Genève, was helmed by Bertrand Pacé and its crew was an America’s Cup who is who of French sailors.

Another newcomer, MADRID, is one point down the table. Helmed by Olympic gold medallist José Maria Van der Ploeg, the Spanish boat had an excellent start but was unfortunately unable to keep up. Another point further down is Roma GP42.2 that had a difficult first event on their brand new yacht. Everything is open and we could well be for some surprises in Saint-Tropez.

The Giraglia Rolex Cup is organized by the Yacht Club Italiano (YCI) in collaboration with the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, the co-organizer for the 7th consecutive year. It is run under the supervision of the Federazione Italiana Vela, the Fédération Française de Voile, and with the collaboration of the City of Saint-Tropez and the Yacht Club de France. Racing will take place right inside the Saint-Tropez bay, a couple of miles from the city’s Vieux Port and unlike the rest of classes taking part in the event, the GP42 fleet will only sail windward/leeward races.

The remaining four events of the Quebramar GP42 Cup 2008 are the Rolex Trofeo de la Reina in Valencia (July 10th to 13th); the Copa del Rey AUDI MAPFRE in Palma (July 26th to August 2nd); the Trofeu Quebramar-Chrysler in Cascais (August 28th to 30th); and the grand finale, the Trofeo César Manrique in Puerto Calero (October 16th to 18th).

James Spithill and Team Ceeref conquer the match race event of the RC 44 Austria Cup

[Source: RC44] Six hours to complete an entire Round Robin: the organisers of the Austria Cup have done a great job after yesterday’s postponement. Today’s races were superb, with 8-15 knots of wind and a great sunshine. Team Ceeref wins the event, ahead of Team Aqua and BMW ORACLE Racing.

Unlike yesterday, the breeze kicked in just after lunch time, allowing the RC 44’s to set sail and start their duals. The Race Committee established a very short course next to the beautiful city of Gmunden, allowing the numerous public to follow the races from the shore whilst eating a bratwurst and listening to an expert commentary.

The action proved to be extraordinary throughout the day, with short and intense races featuring all the situations match racing can offer, and particularly the nasty ones, putting the jury under great pressure.

The event grew in intensity as the hours passed by, reaching its climax during the last matches of the day.

The first decisive dual opposed Team Aqua to BMW ORACLE Racing on flight 6. The two teams crossed the starting line prematurely, the American entry managing to take the lead whilst re-crossing the line. However, Cameron Appleton, on great form, fought his way back during the second beat, taking the lead and winning the race with great style.

Flight 8 proved to be particularly intense. Indeed, Team Hiroshi – sailing below their usual level until then – managed to beat Team Aqua by 2 seconds. At the same time, the big match of the day was opposing James Spithill – unbeaten until then - to Larry Ellison’s BMW ORACLE Racing with Russell Coutts at the tactics. This proved to be one of the best matches of the event, Spithill winning by six seconds after an epic dual.

The last flight of the day featured two decisive matches: Team Banco Espirito Santo (with John Kostecki at the helm) against BMW ORACLE Racing (competing for the third place of the podium) and Team Ceeref against Team Aqua, competing for the overall victory.

Patrick de Barros’s Banco Espirito Santo started the race as it started the event: with a penalty. Leading for most of the race, the Portuguese entry didn’t manage to create a big enough gap to execute its 270° before the arrival line. In a last desperate effort, Kostecki tried to force BMW ORACLE Racing into its own penalty turn, but unsuccessfully.

At the same time, James Spithill managed to clearly win the last start against Team Aqua. Sailing alone in the dying breeze, Ceeref didn’t have to fight too hard to win this last race. Team Ceeref’s victory is neat and clear: the team hasn’t lost a single race. As for Team Aqua, it finishes at a brilliant second place after having struggled during the beginning of the season. Larry Ellison and Russell Coutts’ BMW ORACLE Racing are third, ahead of Patrick de Barros / John Kostecki’s Banco Espirito Santo.

Team Hiroshi-Città di Milano, the leader of the Championship Tour since the beginning of the year, finishes fifth and will certainly have a long debrief tonight. Markus Wieser’s Team Sea Dubai carries on improving with three wins today (including a precious one against BMW ORACLE Racing). Finally, Beecom finishes seventh of the event with owner Isao Mita courageously at the helm. The Japanese entry finishes ahead of Star World Champion Mateusz Kusznierewicz and the local team Cro-Aut-Sail, who will need more time to make it to the top.

They said:

James Spithill, helmsman, Team Ceeref: “We’ve had a very good day. I have made several mistakes, but the team was great and on such a day, with fairly shifty wind, boat handling is essential. There are sometimes little gusts that come out of nowhere, and we need to react with no warning; it’s quite unpredictable.”

Cameron Appleton, Team Aqua: “I made a big mistake against Jimmy (Spithill) during the last race and this has cost us the title. However, I think that we have been sailing very well; the team did a great job. We have been preparing hard for this event and it has paid off.”

Russell Coutts, tactician, BMW ORACLE Racing: “It is great that we all managed to sail eight races today. It was very close all through the day. On two occasions, we were ahead but we finally lost the match. Both Ceeref and Aqua have sailed very well.”

Patrick de Barros, Banco Espirito Santo: “The place is wonderful, the organization is first class, and the Austrian people are great. I am thrilled although I think we deserved a better result than the one we got.”

Match-race, final results:

(Name of team, helmsman, No of victories / defeats, points)

1) Team Ceeref, James Spithill, 8/0 - 8 points
2) Team Aqua, Cameron Appleton 6/2 - 6 points
3) BMW ORACLE Racing, Larry Ellison, 5/3 - 5 points
4) Team Banco Espirito Santo, John Kostecki, 5/3 – 5 points
5) Team Hiroshi - Città di Milano, Sébastien Col 5/3 - 5 points
6) Sea Dubai, Markus Wieser 4/4 – 4 points
7) Team Beecom, Isao Mita 2/6 – 2 points
8) Team Organika, Mateusz Kusznierewicz 1/8 – 1 point
9) Cro-Aut-Sail, Christian Binder, 0/8 - 0 point

Lack of wind cancels racing in opening day of the RC44 Austria Cup

That's the peril of holding a race in a lake. There was no wind at all in the Traunsee today and the nine RC44 yachts will have to try their luck on Thursday.

Hall Spars Building Mast for BMW Oracle's America’s Cup Multihull

[Source: BMW Oracle] The carbon fiber mast for BMW ORACLE Racing's new America's Cup multihull is now under construction at Hall Spars in Bristol, Rhode Island, the team confirmed today.

Located about 20 miles from Newport, the long-time home of the America's Cup, the Hall facility was a natural choice for undertaking what is a difficult engineering challenge, BMW ORACLE Racing design coordinator, Mike Drummond, said.

"It is a huge challenge to construct such a large mast and to cure the carbon in an autoclave big enough to accommodate this project," he said. "Based in the USA, Hall Spars have a leading reputation in delivering the high-quality construction we need on this scale.

"The rig program is a key component in the performance of the aero package on the multihull,” Drummond said. The rig design team is led by American Scott Ferguson and Hervé Devaux of France with support from BMW.

“It’s a real pleasure to work with the BMW ORACLE team. The Hall team thrives on innovation, and our facility and autoclave are perfectly suited for a project of this magnitude. The performance of this boat will be like no other in existence. I can’t wait to see the sea trials,” said Ben Hall, vice president of Hall Spars & Rigging.

Sail Oman becomes 10th team to enter the Extreme 40 iShares Cup

[Source: iShares Cup] This brand new Extreme 40 team is backed by the Sultanate of Oman as part of a larger project to promote the country as a world-class sailing destination. The crew will begin the series made up of international pro sailors, but with an increasing presence of Omani nationals as the campaign progresses.

The Oman Sail Team should get off to a flying start in the 2008 iShares Cup, with a talented crew of professional British sailors opening the series. The Extreme 40 will be skippered by Pete Cumming, who relished the chance to take over the reins of fellow iShares Cup entry Holmatro for a couple of races at the recent training regatta in Valencia. Pete and his crew jumped into the catamaran and made a great early impression, getting the best start of the fleet in their first ever Extreme 40 race.

Pete Cummings said afterwards, "We were well pleased to get a couple of races in before we join the Oman Sail Team. We've still got our 'learner' plates on, but plan to give the other entrants a run for their money."

The new Sail Oman team becomes the 10th entry to the iShares Cup. Photo copyright Mark Lloyd/Sail Oman

British Olympic bronze medalist Chris Draper will helm the Extreme 40, having moved into the fleet from the high performance 49er skiff class. "It's exactly the kind or racing that I love, real crash and burn stuff," he said, "I'm massively excited about the quality of sailors we're going to be racing against, but we've got a good team."

The rest of the initial crew also packs in plenty of experience. Mark Bulkeley, who represented Britain in the Tornado catamaran at the 2004 Olympic Games, will be mainsheet trimmer and tactician with David 'Freddie' Carr - a familiar face on last year's iShares Cup circuit and former America's Cup crew - on the bow.

The new Sail Oman team becomes the 10th entry to the iShares Cup. Photo copyright Mark Lloyd/Sail Oman

Over the course of the iShares Cup Sailing Series the Brits will be joined by members of the Oman Sail Team crew, selected after an arduous land and sea assessment and comprising members of The Royal Army of Oman; The Royal Air Force of Oman; The Royal Navy of Oman; The Royal Omani Police Force and The Sultan's Special Forces. They have been undergoing intensive sail training since February 2008 with the hope of becoming a competitive force in the iShares Cup over the coming year.

Event Director Gilles Chiorri welcomed the entry, which brings the first Arab team to the iShares Cup. “This very innovative entry from the Sultanate of Oman is driving an exciting sailing project; it will attract a lot of attention on the water with a multicultural crew and eye-catching branding."

Oman Sail will be one of 10 teams contesting this year's iShares Cup Sailing Series, with the first event kicking off in Lugano, Switzerland, in just two days time.

The new Sail Oman team becomes the 10th entry to the iShares Cup. Photo copyright Mark Lloyd/Sail Oman

The RC44 fleet practices in "dream" conditions

[Source: RC44] They may be the best sailors in the world; they still have a lot to discover in the world of sailing. With its exceptional scenery, snow capped mountains and lovely thermal breeze, Lake Traunsee certainly delivers on this respect, to the delight of all the sailors involved in the RC 44 Austria Cup.

Will the lake conditions reshuffle the cards? The question raised last weeks is still open but the first practice brings initial clews. Indeed, the winner is Team Beecom, from Japan; a team that often got very good results in light and flat conditions during the first RC 44 Championship Tour. Sailing with a genoa – unlike the other teams who opted for a jib, Beecom benefited from some light wind patches to make it to the top.

Practice race of the RC44 fleet at the Austria Cup. Traunsee, 27 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

Second of the practice race, Team Banco Espirito Santo (with John Kostecki at the helm) confirms that it is in good form after a good race in Cagliari last month, just ahead of Markus Wieser’s Team Sea Dubai.

Team Austria Cro-a-Sail - considered as the local team thanks to the involvement of Christian Binder and Sylvia Vogl (who will compete in the Olympic Games this summer in the 470 Class) – was also fighting for victory today and finishes a good fourth.

Organised by PROFS Marketing KG, the Austria Cup begins tomorrow with the match racing event. After a full round robin held in two days, the team owners will take the helm for three days of fleet racing. A long distance race - the DHL Trophy - will take the fleet around Lake Traunsee on Saturday.

Victory Challenge uses SWE-73 for corporate hospitality

Given the impasse the 33rd America's Cup has found itself, everybody, except BMW Oracle and Alinghi, has to improvise and find alternatives to the lack of activity in order to keep the team alive and, most importantly, find sponsors that will guarantee its survival.

Desafío, having guaranteed 60 million euros from Iberdrola, is not in a dire situation but the rest of potential challengers are in a much more delicate financial state and have either shut down completely or scaled down considerably. A clear example of that situation is Victory Challenge, the 32nd America's Cup challenger from Sweden, that has now reappeared in Port America's Cup.

The Swedes have secured a deal with Volkswagen Financial Services for a week long package of sailing activities and motivational speaking, taking place here in Valencia. As the photos clearly show, the team's older-generation America's Cup yacht SWE-73 has been painted to the German car group's livery and will be used in order to entertain its guests.

We witnessed the first outing of the yacht, earlier this morning in Valencia. It was for sure a strange feeling to take pictures of this yacht under these conditions, considering the fact that one or two years ago they were the pinnacle of sailing technology. Now they are chartered by the week for corporate hospitality....

As the CEO of the team, Johan Stenman clearly puts it in their press release, "the current project is a completely separate operation to our long-term America’s Cup intentions and should be considered as a simple and effective way of getting some value from our assets that are unfortunately not being used for Americas’s Cup racing at the moment".

The rebranded SWE-73 ready leave the Victory Challenge for a day of corporate hospitality. My apologies for the poor lighting conditions but weather in Valencia has been awful for more than a week. Valencia, 27 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Kazuhiko Sofuku, bowman of BMW Oracle until last year. Valencia, 27 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The rebranded SWE-73 leaves the Victory Challenge for a day of corporate hospitality. My apologies for the poor lighting conditions but weather in Valencia has been awful for more than a week. Valencia, 27 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

It's been a long time since I last photographed an ACC yacht being towed out. Valencia, 27 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes first appearance

[Source: Team Russia] Team Russia’s new Volvo Open 70 yacht made a spectacular entrance into the world today. Its 23 metre long racing hull appeared in public for the first time hovering high over the boat sheds of builder’s Green Marine Lymington (UK). On a day that started extremely wet and blustery, a break in the weather around high water enabled the hull to be safely lowered by a massive 200 Tonnes crane into the Lymington River.

Team Russia will take part in the Volvo Ocean Race, the premiere round the world yacht race that starts in Alicante this October. The event covers over 37,000 nautical miles and visits 11 ports, culminating in a finish in St Petersburg, Russia in June 2009.

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

With this manoeuvre safely executed the boat was then checked, unhooked and positioned to wait for the tide to fall. Spectators from the shore and on RIBs hovering around the boat were quick to notice some of the innovative features Lymington designer Rob Humphreys had incorporated into his first Volvo Open 70 design. Most notably, the double spray rails at the front, the bluff bow and powerful stern design had people rushing for their cameras.

Michael Wood’s CEO of Team Russia was delighted to see the boat emerge from the shed; “We started building her in August last year, he explains. “It’s been a fantastic team effort, from the design by Rob Humphreys, the hard work by Simon Smith and the team at Green’s and the expert management and commitment shown by Tim Dean our project manager, also, the incredible hours of hard work behind the scenes by all our Team. It’s a great day for us, to finally see her in the water.”

With the tide in retreat, nervousness began to build in anticipation of the next stage of the delivery. This precious race yacht, which had taken approximately 34,000 man hours to build, had to wait for the tide to drop to pass under a low railway bridge further down river with little room to spare and no room for error.

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

Nail biting and careful navigation between the four supports of the bridge had team and crew working within 30mm either side of the supports with little more than centimetres above the deck. With the encouragement of the boats shore crew, Team Russia appeared through the bridge and into open water to rapturous applause and cheers of relief.

Skipper Andreas Hanakamp watched in anticipation as the RIBs manoeuvred Team Russia’s yacht the short distance to a pontoon off the Royal Lymington Yacht Club, where she will rest overnight before an early dawn tow across The Solent to Endeavour Quay, Gosport, as long as the weather holds.

Team Russia will have her rudders, keel and mast fitted this week and will complete her commissioning and sail trials in early June. There will be an official naming ceremony of the boat in Portsmouth on 16th June at Gunwharf Quay.

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Tim Stonton/Volvo Ocean Race

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Mike Austen / Team Russia

Team Russia's brand new VOR70 makes her first public appearance. Lymington, 26 May 2008. Photo copyright Mike Austen / Team Russia

BlackMatch Wins Open Match Cup

[Source: BlackMatch Racing] Today was the final day of racing in the Open Match Cup. We completed our final three races of the round robin today in again, near perfect match racing conditions and managed to win all three. Our final races were against Rafal Sawicki from Poland, last year's champion Eric Monnin from Switzerland and Mads Elber from Denmark.

We qualified 1st equal at the end of the round robin, tied with Jure Orel from Slovenia and it was decided that we were to race America's Cup Helmsman and world #12 Ian Ainslie, in a best of 3 semi final while Jure Orel from Slovenia would take on Marek Stancyk from Poland.

In a well competed semi final, we managed to take a 2-0 victory over Ainslie who was arguably one of the best pre-starters at this event. In both races we held a slim advantage off the start line and extended throughout the race, claiming our berth in the final.

The other semi final was also won 2-0 by Jure Orel, so it was to be New Zealand taking on Slovenia in the best of 5 final. Jure and his crew had shown excellent form throughout the regatta while we had steadily been improving, so the scene was set for an excellent final show down.

Another victory for Adam Minoprio and BlackMatch Racing

In our first match against Jure we had a big advantage off the start line, we had also forced a penalty on them when they failed to complete a tack onto starboard that resulted in a collision. We defended our lead throughout the race and sailed well to gain an early upper hand in the final.

Our second match saw a much closer affair, the Slovenians lead us off the start line after a closely contested pre-start and a fierce tacking duel ensued. By the first top mark it was 'neck and neck' but we had made significant inroads and managed to roll over the top of Orel on the final tack to the mark. We had an excellent spinnaker set and maintained our slim advantage throughout the remainder of the race.

The third match was ours to win, facing a 2-0 deficit all of the pressure was on the Eastern Europeans and we again had an excellent start. We had a big lead and Jure had received a penalty after gybing onto port in front of us, the advantage was too much and we held on for victory, in doing so winning the 2008 Open Match Cup.

Thank you to all of our friends and family back home, it was great to come away with a victory here in Austria and we appreciate all of the support that we have received from everyone.

BlackMatch would like to again thank our sponsors: FedEx Express, Ross Munro from Line 7 and John St Clair Brown from Waiwera Infinity, it is great to get our first win on our European Tour and their ongoing support is helping make this opportunity possible for the BlackMatch boys. To the RNZYS and everyone else, thank you for your support.

Another victory for Adam Minoprio and BlackMatch Racing (left)

Photo sequence of BMW Oracle catamaran capsize

Last Wednesday, one of BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamarans capsized while the 33rd America's Cup challenger were carrying out one of their usual two-boat training sessions. British journalist Tim Jeffrey was onboard the boat when it capsized and filed this report about the incident. Still, what is more impressive is the sequence of the capsize, captured by the lens of the team's photographer Gilles Martin-Raget.

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin - Raget

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin - Raget

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin - Raget

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin - Raget

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin - Raget

Mean Machine is searching for sponsors

[Source: Mean Machine] The search is on for a sponsor for the team who took the Alicante Trophy and who currently lead the TP52 fleet in the European AUDI MedCup Circuit 2008

There are just 10 days to go until the second event in the MedCup Circuit kicks off, with Mean Machine and her international crew, lead by Peter de Ridder, starting as leaders.

The Mean Machine team has a history that spans back over 20 years, making it one of the oldest and most successful teams in the world of sailing. Despite winning the 2006 MedCup Circuit, stepping onto the third step of the podium at the 2007 TP52 World Championships, as well as at the 2008 Farr 40 World Championships, Mean Machine is still on the lookout for a sponsor.

De Ridder’s 25-plus strong crew are already preparing for the Marseille Trophy. The recently launched TP52 Mean Machine set course for Valencia following the Alicante win, in order to finish off the fine-tuning to the boat. Valencia was also en route to the famous Côte d’Azur where the mighty fleet of Transpac 52s are set to do battle once more.

The engines are getting warmed up and one thing’s for sure: Marseille is going to witness one of the fiercest examples of Mediterranean racing around. Mean Machine was one of the most widely covered teams in the Press in 2007, and now, as leaders of the AUDI MedCup Circuit 2008, the Mean Machines find themselves focusing on two objectives: to take another victory with their new TP52 in Marseille… and to continue with the search for a sponsor for the 2008 season.

GGYC and SNG appellate briefs

It was the turn of GGYC (Golden Gate Yacht Club) to present their appellate brief on Thursday. It was of course in reply to SNG's (Société Nautique de Genève) own brief, dated May 15th, in turn a reply to GGYC's initial brief to the appellate court on May 9th.

I usually refrain from making any judgments to these documents since I have no legal expertise whatsoever, especially in matters of the NY commercial law, "nada" as the Spanish say. These documents are presented here for your own convenience.

Related PDF Documents

- GGYC Appellate Brief, dated 22 May 2008

- SNG Appellate Brief, dated 15 May 2008

- GGYC Appellate Brief, dated 09 May 2008

Photos from BMW Oracle's TP52 boat christening and sea trials

As we said earlier today, BMW Oracle took their brand new TP52 boat out for her first sea trials in Valencia. It also appears they had held a christening ceremony before that. Here are some photos, courtesy of the team and Gilles Martin Raget.

BMW Oracle christen their brand new TP52 yacht. Valencia, 22 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

Just in case someone had any doubts about it being an American team, Tom Ehman, spokesperson, puts the flag. Valencia, 22 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

BMW Oracle take their brand new TP52 yacht for the first sea trials. Valencia, 22 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

BMW Oracle take their brand new TP52 yacht for the first sea trials. Valencia, 22 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

What is this?

Well, it shouldn't be very hard to figure out what boat appears in these pictures.

Hint: All pictures were shot in Valencia and there seems to be a famous Australian sailor onboard.

Apparently is was too easy a quiz. We immediately received three correct answers. It is indeed the brand new BMW Oracle TP52, on her way out of Port America's Cup for her first ever test sail. She left the team base at 2:45 pm and headed for what has become a test and training camp for the majority of the brand new TP52 yachts.

Once again conditions are excellent here in Valencia with a strong constant breeze (probably 15-20 knots) and beautiful sunny skies. Let's only hope they don't break this boat down as well.

The RC44 fleet to race for the first time on a lake

[Source: RC44] The RC 44 Austria Cup will take place on the beautiful lake Traun, between May 28 – June 1. Following two events held on the sea, with waves and fairly strong winds, this regatta may well reshuffle the cards. Once again, the line up is exceptional with Class leaders Armando Giulietti and his pro skipper Sébastien Col sailing against Larry Ellison, John Kostecki, James Spithill, Cameron Appleton, Mateusz Kusznierewicz, Russell Coutts and many more.

The third event of the RC 44 Championship Tour 2008 promises once again to be interesting, with nine top level teams led by some of the world’s best sailors.

Organised by PROFS Marketing KG, the Austria Cup will begin on Wednesday May 28 with the match racing event. After a full round robin held in two days, the team owners will take the helm for three days of fleet racing. A long distance race - the DHL Trophy - will allow all the participants to discover the beauties of Lake Traun, together with some of its local wind effects! The winner of this race will be awarded with the DHL Trophy, whilst the points of the regatta will be incorporated in the fleet race ranking.

It is the first time this season that the RC 44’s will race on a lake: the Austrian Traunsee; a mountain lake well known for its consistent thermal breeze. Will the flat water and possibly tricky tactical conditions change the Class’ hierarchy? Only time will tell but one thing is sure: Armando Giulietti and Sébastien Col - who currently sail with the Championship Tour leader’s gold wheel - will face a strong opposition from amongst others Igor Lah / James Spithill, Patrick de Barros, Chris Bake and other sailors such as Cameron Appleton, Mateusz Kusznierewicz, Kevin Harrap or Markus Wieser. Winner of the match race event in Cagliari last month, Larry Ellison will sail the match race event with Russell Coutts and the fleet regatta with John Kostecki; as for Coutts, he will sail the fleet regatta alongside Patrick de Barros’ Team Banco Espirito Santo.

Another team to watch will be Team Austria, a local team led by Christian Binder, sailing on board Miroslav Reljanovic’s Cro-A-Sail with some of their usual crewmembers. Together with Sylvia Vogl, an Olympic Games participant, the home team may well be a strong competitor thanks to their local experience.

The RC 44 Austria Cup will be a public-friendly event. Indeed, spectators will be able to watch the races from the shore (on the Gmundner Esplanade). “Our goal is to help people understand and appreciate our sport”, comments the event organiser Christian Feichtinger.

BMW Oracle's Extreme 40 catamaran capsizes while training in Valencia

[Source: BMW Oracle] During BMW ORACLE Racing’s in-house regatta in their two Extreme 40 catamarans today, one of the boats capsized during an exciting downwind luffing match.

While no one was hurt during the capsize, team CEO/Skipper Russell Coutts (NZL) sustained a minor injury while the crew were attempting to right the boat. His leg was cut, and required nine stitches.

The other crew on board with Coutts were helmsman Franck Cammas (FRA), Jonathan Macbeth (NZL) and Alberto Barovier (ITA). There were no other injuries.

During the retrieval of the catamaran, the mast broke. The boat and mast were towed back to the team base for repairs. The team was race training off Valencia in 17-20 knots of wind.

Second day of in-house training for BMW Oracle. Valencia, 21 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

BMW ORACLE Racing Competes in Extreme 40s

[Source: BMW Oracle] Valencia, Spain, 20 May 2008 – BMW ORACLE Racing skipper Russell Coutts and helmsman James Spithill are going head-to-head this week in Extreme 40 catamarans in a nine-race, in-house battle as part of the team’s race training for the 33rd America’s Cup.

Today was the first day of the three-day series off Valencia’s Malvarossa beach. After some fickle spring weather the past few days in Valencia, the sunny spring day brought a steady 14 knots of afternoon sea breeze and plenty of action. Much of the afternoon, the catamarans were “flying a hull” (one of the two hulls out of the water), reaching speeds of 15 knots upwind and over 20 knots downwind.

In today’s racing, multihull expert-consultant Franck Cammas (FRA) was helming Coutts’ boat with team members Jonathan Macbeth (NZL) grinding and Alberto Barovier (ITA) on the bow. On the Spithill team, John Kostecki (USA) was calling tactics, Dirk de Ridder (NED) was grinding and Alan Smith (NZL) was on the bow. The crews will remain the same but they will swap boats throughout the three days of racing.

“The conditions were just perfect today,” Spithill said. “It doesn’t get any better than this. It was really good fun.”

BMW Oracle's two Extreme 40 catamarans carry out in-house training. Valencia, 20 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

BMW Oracle's two Extreme 40 catamarans carry out in-house training. Valencia, 20 May 2008. Photo copyright Gilles Martin-Raget / BMW Oracle

Terrorist attack destroys Desafío's yacht club in northern Spain

Although this terrible and tragic event took place early on Monday morning, at 00:50 am more precisely, I report it today, after deliberating with other Spanish sailing journalists on whether any publicity should be given to these cowardly attacks.

As most of our readers probably know, Desafío, the former Challenger of Record of the 33rd America's Cup, decided last month to abandon the newly formed CNEV (Club Náutico Español de Vela) and instead represent a well-respected and traditional yacht club. As a result, Desafío chose to fly the colors of Real Club Marítimo del Abra, located in the northern Spanish city of Bilbao. Officially, the reason the team opted for that yacht club was that it was the first one in the alphabetical order of all Spanish clubs although it is strongly believed it was a decision by Iberdorla, the syndicate's main sponsors, whose headquarters are a few kilometers from Abra.

On Monday morning, at exactly 00:50 am, a car bomb exploded right in front of the yacht club's main building. According to the initial press reports, there were at least 60kg of explosives inside the van that was parked on the city's boardwalk, just 10 meters away from the building's entrance but also very close to a number of adjacent houses. The Basque terrorist group ETA had warned the police at 11:55 pm on Sunday that a bomb would explode within the following hour in front the club's premises. And so it did and according to witnesses the explosion was heard miles away. Unaware of the bomb threat, people in the vicinity thought a nearby chemical factory had exploded. There were no victims since the police had managed to evacuate the area but material damage was severe.

The yacht club's building with the signs of destruction very clear.

Fortunately, there hasn't been any structural damage to the building but as one can easily judge from the photos the damage was extensive, to say the least. According to TV reports, the yacht club reckons it should take more than 6 months of repairs and construction work to bring the building to its initial conditions.

As for the reasons of the attack, it is not believed they are related to the fact the yacht club will eventually challenge for the 34th America's Cup. The Real Club Marítimo del Abra is par excellence the yacht club of the local pro-Spanish elite and establishment and among its members figure various prominent local bankers and industrialists. That fact by itself makes it a target for the ETA group.

This is the third time the yacht club suffers a terrorist attack from ETA. The first one, in the 1970's, was by far the most important one when an arson completely burned down the old wooden building. The new concrete premises were then attacked in 2002 and again yesterday.

Obviously, the team's facilities in Valencia (1,000 km away) have not been affected and there haven't been any reports of any threats to the Port America's Cup facilities, at least as far as we know.

Police search for evidence in the yacht club's facilities.

Here is a video taken right before the attack. At one minute into the video you can see the huge explosion.

VLC35 makes maiden sail in Valencia

While the Extreme 40's were racing off Port America's Cup, VLC35, the one design boat built by Muller Yachts, made her maiden outing a few miles down the coast.

The first ever VLC 35 on her maiden outing. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Mart Alexaindre / Muller Yachts

The first ever VLC 35 on her maiden outing. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Mart Alexaindre / Muller Yachts

The first ever VLC 35 on her maiden outing. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Mart Alexaindre / Muller Yachts

The iShares Cup is in town

While one Cup is in limbo here in Valencia, another one visited the city for the first time ever. The iShares Cup held this weekend their first ever event in the host city of the America's Cup, even if it was officially called a training regatta.

The iShares Cup is a circuit of five European events, raced aboard the Extreme 40 catamarans. This year, nine teams will participate in the circuit and without any doubt the spotlight will be on newcomers Alinghi as well as British America's Cup challenger Team Origin.

A total of five boats took part in the three-day official training event that took place from Friday to Sunday. The Defender of the 33rd America's Cup entered two teams, Alinghi White and Alinghi Black, that were joined by Holmatro, iShares and Volvo Ocean Race. Alinghi White's crew was Ed Baird (helmsman), Rodney Ardern (mainsail), Lorenzo Mazza (trimmer), Piet van Nieuwenhuyzen (bowman) and Peter Evans (5th man). Alinghi Black's crew was Murray Jones (helmsman), Warwick Fleury (mainsail), Nils Frei (trimmer), Jan Dekker (bowman) and Pierre-Yves Jorand (5th man).

The race committee was able to start 4 races on Friday but on Saturday, only one race took place, as the same storm that hit the TP52's in Alicante forced the Extreme 40 yachts to return to their bases.

Valencia Sailing followed the practice on Sunday when the Extreme 40 fleet raced five times. There were four windward/leeward races as well as a triangular one. The first three were held in very light conditions, with the wind never getting over 3-4 knots. The last two were sailed in a stronger breeze, thanks to the huge cloud formations hovering over the city of Valencia. Fortunately, the storm came a couple of hours later, giving us the opportunity to watch a little bit more action but still nothing to write home about.

Given the light conditions, the race course was shortened significantly to approximately half a mile, making the windward/leeward races a matter of 1-2 tacks and 1-2 gybes. As far as the results are concerned, they were a sheer formality. As it was expected both Defender boats easily prevailed in the 10 races of the event, with Baird winning 8 times and Jones twice. Despite this enormous advantage, the Defender of the America's Cup will need all the training hours it can get in multihull racing.

Most of the pictures are from the last two races, especially the very last one when the breeze had picked up. Finally, I will add a personal observation from the photo shooting process. No matter where the 33rd America's Cup takes place, the moment the breeze picks up, the organizers will need to borrow some VERY fast boats from the local coast guard or navy if they want to be able just to keep pace with the two yachts.

The Extreme 40 boat Volvo Ocean Race was christened on Sunday morning before the start of the races. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet inside Port America's Cup before the races. In a light wind day there is no reason why a match race couldn't be held inside the basin. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The iShares boat, maneuvering inside the canal, in front of the Veles e Vents building. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Hopefully, in the future, we will be seeing these boats more often here in Valencia. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

The Extreme 40 fleet trains in Valencia for the first time ever. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Ed Baird and Alinghi White sailing to another victory. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Ed Baird and Alinghi White sailing to another victory. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing

Ed Baird and Alinghi White sailing to another victory. Valencia, 18 May 2008. Photo copyright Pierre Orphanidis / Valencia Sailing